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mourn with those who mourn

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Today, I bore witness to unimaginable grief. The kind of grief that literally caused everyone else in the room to turn their faces away. I don’t quite know how to process it. I’m uncertain in my prayers, in my feelings. Just when I think that this life we’ve been called to has caused us to plumb the depths of brokenness and pain, there’s something new. Tonight, I feel a bit broken myself. There are things you experience, things that you see that you can never erase from your mind, and this was one of those days.

Tomorrow, while I give thanks and celebrate with my family, I am acutely aware that there are others who are not feeling celebratory, who are dealing with grief and pain and anger and loss. I remember those who are spending the day without.

I think I’ve posted this before, but it bears posting again. This prayer is from Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals. It’s a prayer for the “Death of Someone Killed in the Neighborhood” That isn’t exactly what happened today, but it seems appropriate as well. Please take some time, pray with me, remember those who are struggling through this holiday weekend.

Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world. Have mercy on us. Grant us peace.

For the unbearable toil of our sinful world, we plead for remission. For the terror of absence from our beloved, we plead for your comfort. For the scandalous presence of death in your creation, we plead for the resurrection.

Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world. Have mercy on us. Grant us peace. Come, Holy Spirit, and heal all that is broken in our lives, in our streets, and in our world. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.